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‘In those circumstances suspects have
to be released on bail as there are strict time limits covering how
long suspects can be held in custody without charge. That is exactly
what happened in this case.’

Sir Peter explained that the police operation to find Cregan after the murders of Mark and David Short last summer was 'huge'.

'We
carried out a huge number of warrants to try to find Cregan,' he said. 'We had huge amounts of intelligence, huge support from the public. We
were using the most complex investigative techniques from the most
experienced detectives nationally.

'It
was absolutely devastating when despite all that huge effort during
that time, working very long hours, for it then to result to result in
the death of two of our officers. It was then traumatic for everybody
but particularly for the officers who had been working so desperately to
try and find Cregan.'

He
continued: 'We know there was a conspiracy (by) a number of people to
protect Cregan and there is a separate investigation into that and we’re
absolutely determined to get every single person involved in that
convicted.

'There
was a criminal conspiracy to move Cregan around the country. I think it
was slightly more difficult for us, it was the time of the Olympics and
so getting a lot of publicity - we got a lot here in greater Manchester
- was a bit more difficult because there was so much interest in the
Olympics at that time.

Much loved and missed: Cregan lured PC Nicola Hughes (left) and PC Fiona
Bone (right) to a quiet cul-de-sac after claiming there was a burglary,
before gunning them down

Tribute: Bryn Hughes, father of Pc Nicola Hughes, reads a statement outside Preston Crown Court after Dale Cregan was told today he will die in prison

'But
we used every single thing that we knew. We had huge support from other
police forces, from national criminal agencies, to try and detect
Cregan but he was being protected by his criminal conspiracy and
organised crime which tragically then led to the deaths of Fiona and
Nicola.'

He
said there was intelligence that Cregan was in Hattersley and elsewhere
in Greater Manchester - and even abroad - but there were no confirmed
sightings.

Cregan arrived at the Hattersley estate late the night before the murders of the two constables, he added.

He
said: 'We have to be realistic. If Cregan had seen we were sending armed
officers to every house, he would have gone to another part of the
country.

'We
feel we did everything we could and I know their families understand,
as all policing families and parents do, the risk they take, they
understand the sacrifice.

'And that Nicola and Fiona accepted that and didn’t want to be part of an armed police force.'

Cregan was told he will die in prison as he was jailed for life without parole today, after the trial sparked by his four-month crime spree ended.

Cregan, 30, was given a whole life
sentence at Preston Crown Court in Lancashire by Mr Justice Holroyde QC -
at the end of a trial which laid bare the sheer brutality of
Manchester's underworld.

He
was already on the run for the murders of David Short, 46, and son
Mark, 23, when he killed policewomen Nicola Hughes, 23, and Fiona Bone,
32, in a horrifying gun and grenade attack.

Sentencing Cregan - described by Greater Manchester Police as a 'scourge on our society' - Mr Justice Holroyde said he had 'acted with pre-meditated savagery' in the 'quite appalling' murders.

'You,
Cregan, drew those two officers into a calculated trap for the sole
purpose of murdering them in cold blood,' he said. Mr Justice Holroyde
said he had no doubt that he had expected one or more unarmed officers
to attend his false report of a crime.

FAMILY OF MURDERED POLICE OFFICER 'WE WILL LIVE WITH WHAT HE DID FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES'

The statement read, in full, on behalf of the family of PC Nicola Hughes:

'Nicola was first and foremost our daughter and sister to her younger brother Sam. She was our only daughter, beautiful, loving, thoughtful, caring, hard-working and happy.

'She embraced everything she did throughout her life with total commitment and enthusiasm. She touched the hearts of everyone she came into contact with and who were part of her life.

'In September 2012 she was at her happiest. She was a very proud and dedicated police officer. She had a career that she loved and enjoyed, with colleagues, who she often called friends.

'She was planning her future with her boyfriend Gareth and had just become the proud godmother of Jack. She had so much to look forward to, a bright future, one she had worked hard for and one she deserved to live to the full.

'Nicola's life, was snatched away from her on the morning of Tuesday 18 September 2012 when she, and her colleague Fiona, whose life was also taken, answered a routine call to an address in Hattersley. This call turned into anything but a routine call and transformed the lives of everyone involved.

'For Nicola and Fiona whose lives were taken away in the most unnecessary and brutal of circumstances;

'For her family and friends who lost the most beautiful, fun loving and dedicated young woman that ever lived;

'For the officers and staff of Greater Manchester Police who lost a valued colleague, partner and friend.

'As for the man convicted of her murder - he has lost nothing.

'He had already committed two murders and was destined for a lifetime behind bars. He chose, on that day, to murder our daughter and leave our lives completely devastated, a life barely worth living without her.

'Now the trial has concluded he will return to his cell to live the rest of his natural life. We, however, will live with what he did every single hour of every single day for the rest of our lives.

'It is beyond our understanding how and why anyone would want to murder two innocent young women who were doing their jobs and had arrived with nothing but thoughts of providing assistance to someone in need of their help.

'Our whole lives will always surround what happened on that day. Birthdays, Christmas and anniversaries are now lost to memories and will never ever be the same again. Our lives will always be so empty without her.

'The support we have received from our family, friends, neighbours and complete strangers both nationally and worldwide, who have been touched by our plight, has been overwhelming.

'Words cannot express our appreciation for what has already passed and for those who will continue to support us throughout the days, months and years ahead. We could not have got this far without you. Thank you so much.

'We would also like to take this opportunity to thank the following:

'To Greater Manchester Police for their support and guidance throughout this ordeal and to police forces nationally and worldwide for supporting not only us, but for the support they have provided to Greater Manchester Police in their darkest days;

'To our Family Liaison Officers who have shown so much commitment and loyalty and remained by our side throughout;

'To the Investigation Team through to the Crown Prosecution Service, barristers and jury who have worked tirelessly and had to endure such horrendous detail set before them in order to bring this man to justice.

'As for the man who took our beautiful devoted daughter, sister and girlfriend away from us, we hope he remains incarcerated for the rest of his life, that he may never, ever, inflict such pain and suffering on anyone ever again.

'Now we need the time to reflect and come to terms with these past traumatic months and politely ask that we are left in private whilst we grieve for the loss of our beautiful girl.'

He said the two constables were performing their public duty when they responded to the call and that Cregan would have seen they were unarmed policewomen as they approached the front door.

'You opened fire with the advantage
of surprise,' he said, 'and opened fire before your victims had the
chance to do anything to protect themselves.'

He added: 'You pursued them with a cold-blooded ruthlessness - determined to end their lives.'

The judge said the ‘murderous use’ of
hand grenades was a crime that ‘must be met with severe punishment’ and
the courts must do what they can to deter a similar offence.

He said a whole life term was only
applied in an ‘exceptionally serious case’. The aggravating features in
Cregan's crimes ‘inescapably’ led him to the conclusion that he should
never be released from prison.

He
had murdered two or more people, with each case involving a substantial
degree of pre-meditation or planning. The judge said the fact that
Cregan had pleaded guilty to the four murders during the trial was a
factor in his favour, but only to a minimal extent.

‘I have no doubt that your guilty pleas were timed to suit your own purposes and do not reflect regret for what you have done.’

Addressing
Cregan and his co-accused in the dock, the judge said he had had ample
time to observe them and noted that they had shown no remorse.

Brutal: The trial of murderer Dale Cregan has ended, with the one-eyed killer set to spend the rest of his life in jail

He told them: ‘I have seen no hint of any real remorse or of any compassion towards your victims. None of you have shown any sign that you care at all. Self-interest has been the motivating force for each of you.’

Cregan
had lured the officers to a house by calling 999 to report a fake
burglary, before shooting them 32 times on the doorstep and then
throwing a grenade at them, which he bragged was his 'calling-card'.

It can be reported for the first
time that during his 17-week trial a stash of explosives thought to
belong him was found hidden in a storm drain.

Today after six days considering their
verdicts, the jury of six men and five women at Preston Crown Court
agreed he was not responsible for the attempted murder of Sharon Hark on August
10 last year.

The jury also reached verdicts on nine other men who were allegedly linked to Cregan's crime spree.

The court heard how 29-year-old Cregan had 'fantasised' about murder and had a 'fetish' for knives, had first shot dead Mark Short as he played pool at a 60th birthday in a Manchester pub last May.

Three months later he then killed Mark's father David Short, shooting him and again throwing explosives because he threatened Cregan's young son.

After going on the run for five weeks and facing a £50,000 reward for his arrest, he enjoyed his 'last night of freedom' with 'beer and cigars' before murdering PCs Bone and Hughes and then handed himself in to police.

For the past 17-weeks he has been
taken to Preston Crown Court led by a convoy of armed police and a
helicopter tracking them for his trial, in a security operation costing
£5million.

FAMILY OF PC FIONA BONE 'STILL COMING TO TERMS' WITH THEIR LOSS

'We are thankful
that we did not have to sit through the evidence of the killings, and
that her fellow officers were spared reliving their experiences in
court.

'We
extend our sympathy to Nicola's family and the Short family who have
attended this trial every day; they also lost two loved ones in tragic
circumstances.

'We
would like to thank GMP for all the help and support that we have
received, and would like to pass special thanks to the investigation
team, the staff at Sedgley Park, Hyde police station and our brilliant
family liaison officers.

'Our
thanks also go to the staff of Preston Crown Court, all those police
and prison officers who assisted in looking after all the families in
the court, and the judge, lawyers and CPS for their time and effort in
preparing and hearing what must have been a difficult case.

'A special thanks to the jury for sitting through a long and difficult trial.

'We
have gathered strength from the huge support shown to us by the public
and police forces from all over the world. Fiona's death has touched so
many.

'We thank all those that have given their time, effort and money for the memorial at Hyde police station.

'We
would also like to publicly thank all those who have taken part in
fund-raising activities in memory of Fiona and Nicola, all the monies
raised have in the main gone to the Police Benevolent Fund and Care of
Police Survivors.

'Both organisations have helped and supported us over the last few months with friendship and advice.

'Some
of these donations will go to establishing a children's play area in
Trafford in Fiona's memory but the majority of the monies will go toward
police charities.

'We
would also like to thank all those who wrote to us after Fiona died.
Their messages brought us great comfort at a time of great sadness in
our lives.

'My
family is still coming to terms with our loss and not a day goes by
without thinking of Fiona. I am told that it gets easier in time, but
for the moment every Tuesday lunch time is difficult, for that was when
our lives changed forever.

'Yes
we have regrets that Fiona was taken from us but we have no regrets
that she was a police officer with Greater Manchester Police and we are
extremely proud of her life and achievements.'

Attack: Cregan emptied the magazine of this Glock handgun and then dumped it by the bodies of the officers he had just fatally injured

CREGAN'S TRIAL ALSO INVOLVED NINE OTHERS ACCUSED OF CRIMES

Verdicts were also returned on the nine other defendants as well as Dale Cregan today.

Leon Atkinson, 35, from Ashton-under-Lyne, Ryan Hadfield, 29, from Droylsden, and Matthew James, 33, from Clayton, were cleared of the murder of Mark Short in the Cotton Tree pub and the attempted murders of three others in the pub.

Luke Livesey, 28, from Hattersley, and Damian Gorman, 38, from Glossop, were found guilty of those charges

Anthony Wilkinson, 34, from Beswick, pleaded guilty during the trial to murdering David Short and possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life. He was cleared of one count of the attempted murder of Mrs Hark on the same day and cleared of causing an explosion with a hand grenade.

Francis Dixon, 38, from Stalybridge, was acquitted of the murder of David Short, the attempted murder of Mrs Hark and causing an explosion with a hand grenade.

Jermaine Ward, 24, was found guilty of the murder of David Short but cleared of the attempted murder of Mrs Hark and causing an explosion with a hand grenade.

Mohammed Ali, 32, from Chadderton, was found guilty of assisting an offender.

Speaking about his crimes, Greater Manchester Police's Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy said: 'All four of these murders were planned assassinations, meticulously calculated by their perpetrators, who went to exceptional efforts to try and avoid detection by the police.

'Our sympathies and support remain with the families and colleagues of Fiona and Nicola, and the Short family, who are unlikely to ever fully recover from the devastation of knowing their loved ones were killed in such horrific circumstances.

'After our two officers, Nicola and Fiona, were murdered in cold blood whilst on duty, I personally reflected for a long time afterwards as to whether anything more could have been done to prevent their deaths, but quickly came to realise that in a society where we police by consent, you cannot police such evil.

'The British public prize the fact that their police force is routinely unarmed and saw this attack as an attack on all of us. I cannot thank the public enough for the support they have, and still continue, to show us.'

Michael Lavery, representing Cregan, said he could not make 'sensible' submissions, given the 'exceptionally grave offences' his client had committed and admitted.

He made no submissions in mitigation.

The court heard Cregan had been convicted of 17 previous offences.

He received a six-month detention and
training order in May 2000 for an offence of wounding, which related to
a glass being used as a weapon in a pub.

Cregan
received a community order in February 2003 for assault when a male
victim was punched in the mouth and had teeth knocked out.

Deceit: Police forensics at the scene of the officers's death, where Cregan fired 32 times, threw a hand grenade then sped off in a car

Bereft: Police officers, who were almost all in tears, pause for thought after laying flowers near to the scene of the shooting

Paying their respects: Colleagues of the fallen PCs came in huge numbers to say their goodbyes and leave messages and flowers

Among his other convictions was one of affray when he received a suspended jail term after a number of males approached their victim and kicked and punched him to the floor.

Prosecutor Nicholas Clarke QC told the judge that victim impact statements had been given by Michelle Kelly, the partner of David Short and mother of Mark Short, the parents of Nicola Hughes, the parents of Fiona Bone and the sister and partner of Fiona Bone.

Statements were also provided from the divisional commander of Tameside Police and from Sir Peter Fahy, chief constable of Greater Manchester Police, on the impact on police officers and the public.None of the statements was read out in court.

Victims: Cregan first murdered Mark Short at a birthday party in May and then killed his father David Short (left) three months later

First crime scene: The first victim, Mark Short, was killed at the Cotton Tree Inn pub in Droylsden at just before midnight

Nazir Afzal, chief crown prosecutor for CPS North West, said: 'The murders of all four victims, Mark Short, David Short and police constables Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes, were nothing short of executions - planned, premeditated and cold-blooded. The blatant use of firearms and grenades put members of the public at risk of significant harm and caused fear amongst local communities.

'This has been a hugely challenging case both in its scale and complexity. Through painstaking analysis of a huge amount of evidence the CPS, prosecuting counsel and police have left no stone unturned to piece together the events and to prove who was responsible. The timescale within which a case of this size, involving so many defendants and so many murders, was brought to trial was exceptional and that was down to the dedication and commitment of everyone in the investigation and prosecution teams.

'I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the witnesses from the local area who spoke to police, gave a statement or had the courage to give evidence at court. Their support and assistance has been vital to securing these convictions.

'Above all our thoughts remain with the families and loved ones of the victims at this extremely difficult time.'

First crime: CCTV footage shows a car pull up at the Cotton Tree Inn Droylsden and a man get out where Dale Cregan murdered Mark Short last May

Evidence: Police later found a bag of what appears to be blood-stained clothes stuffed inside a bin-liner

At the start
of the court case in February Cregan had 'bizarrely' pleaded not guilty
to killing David and Mark Short despite apparently confessing to the
attacks numerous times.

But last month he changed his plea at the last minute after the prosecution had delivered their closing speech to the jury.

He
also admitted the attempted murder of three others in the attacks, and
today was found not guilty of the attempted murder of another victim.

Cregan's spree of murder and violent crime shocked Britain, and for five weeks he was on the run, sparking a nationwide manhunt.

Getaway: This white Vauxhall Combo van was found dumped after the killing of Mark's father David Short three months later

Damage: The vans was completely pocked with holes, likely to be shot from a shotgun used in the attack

His
murderous rampage began on May 25 last year when Mark Short was gunned
down to order in the Cotton Tree Inn, in Droylsden, around four miles
east of Manchester city centre.

The feud stemmed from a vicious fight for control of
low-level organised crime and centred around the
control of the ‘doors’ in pubs and clubs, protection rackets and the
trade in cannabis.

The
drunken slapping of the matriarch of one family by an associate of their
rivals proved to be the tipping point , and the dispute spilled over
into bloodshed.

It is understood Cregan had intended to ‘kneecap’ Mark Short as he played pool but Short bent down and was blasted in the neck.

Mark's
father, David Short, had then vowed to take revenge and threatened to
murder relatives of his son’s killer in retaliation.

Cregan then murdered him on August 10 in front of his house armed with a semi-automatic pistol and grenades.

This then sparked a five-week manhunt, where Cregan was reportedly seen as far south as the Kent coast.

The one-eyed man had also allegedly checked into a celebrity-loved luxury spa resort while police hunted for him - the plush Plas Coch resort on the
island of Anglesey, north Wales.

Police got a tip off he might be there but after staking it out for several days they failed to spot him.

A
week later a holidaymaker then told a hotel worker they were sure he
had been there, as she had seen him splashing around happily in the
luxury heated swimming pool.

Having
avoided detection he returned to Manchester and plotted to kill the
police. Cregan had celebrated the plan the night before with 'beer and
cigars' since he 'knew it was his last night of freedom,' the court
heard.

On September 18 he telephoned 999, claiming there had been a burglary in a Manchester quiet cul-de-sac.

'YOU'LL NEVER BE RELEASED FROM PRISON': JUDGE'S SENTENCING IN FULL

Jailed for life: Judge Justice Holroyde said Dale Cregan will never be released from prison

Dale Cregan was today told he will spend the rest of his life behind bars for the murders of David and Mark Short and policewomen Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone. Here are some of Mr Justice Holroyde's comments during sentencing at Preston Crown Court:

‘I have no doubt that you had been planning to kill David Short ever since he had escaped death at the Cotton Tree. I have no doubt that you were determined to carry out that plan and murder the man you hated whilst you were still able to do so.

‘You, Cregan, managed to avoid arrest and remained at large until 18 September 2012, when you committed two quite appalling crimes of murder. You lured two female officers to their deaths by making a false report that you had been the victim of a crime.

‘Pc Fiona Bone and Pc Nicola Hughes were sent in response to your call for help, performing their public duty for the public good. From your position within the house I have no doubt you were able to see them coming, and you must have seen that they were unarmed female officers. You opened the front door and, with the advantage of surprise, you opened fire before your victims had any chance to do anything to protect themselves.

‘The analysis made by an expert witness who attended the scene was chilling evidence. Although the officers survived the first shots which hit them, you pursued them with a cold-blooded and ruthless determination to end their lives... You acted with premeditated savagery.

‘You, Cregan, drew those two officers into a calculated trap for the sole purpose of murdering them in cold blood.

‘I make it plain that in my judgment the murderous use of hand grenades is a crime which must be met with very severe punishment, and the court must do what it properly can to deter any criminal contemplating a similar offence.

‘The crime of murder ends one life but ruins many more. The harm you have caused, and the pain, anguish and misery you have inflicted, extend far beyond those who were killed or injured by your individual and collective acts.

‘The court has been provided with statements from many victims, which indicate in clear terms what they have suffered and will continue to suffer, in many cases for the rest of their lives. By their nature, such statements contain many highly personal matters, and it is not appropriate for them to be read aloud in a public court.

‘The authors of those statements can however rest assured that I have read and taken account of them all. It is right that I mention some features of them, so that no one can be left in any doubt about the true impact of crimes such as those which you have committed.

‘The statements spell out the reality of witnessing the murder of a child or loved one; the reality of the grim duty of identifying the body of a child or loved one, in two of these cases in the knowledge that the body of the deceased has been disfigured by the explosion of a grenade; the reality of living as a parent bereaved of a child, noting as the years go by each anniversary or event which the deceased child has not lived to enjoy; the reality of living as the parent of a bewildered young child, trying to explain why the deceased will not come home and will not answer a phone call.

‘Some of your victims have had to cope not only with the murder of a loved one but at the same time with an urgent need to vacate their own homes, and to remain apart from other close members of their families, because of a serious risk to their own safety.

‘The families of the murdered police officers, though of course grateful for the overwhelming display of public support, have had to grieve for their losses in the public eye and at the centre of media reporting. These impact statements make clear that the anguish of your victims has been increased by the callous brutality with which death was caused.

‘Those who survived the shootings at the Cotton Tree, but were wounded, have to live with the continuing physical and emotional injuries which they have suffered.

‘Having regard to the issues in this trial, it has neither been necessary nor appropriate to dwell on those injuries, and so little evidence has been heard about them; but they are not to be overlooked or their seriousness understated.

‘The court has also been provided with a statement from a senior police officer which makes plain that the murder of two police officers, and the use of hand grenades, not only horrified but also frightened many members of the public in the area in which those crimes were committed.

‘In the course of this long trial, I have had ample opportunity to observe you all in the dock and to note your reaction to the evidence which the jury have heard. I have seen no hint of any real remorse or of any compassion for your victims. Self-interest has been the motivating force.

‘If the court specifies a minimum term, you cannot be released until that minimum term has expired. But even then you will not automatically be released. You will not be released unless and until the Parole Board are satisfied that it is safe to release you into the community. That time may never come.

‘In your case, Cregan, I am satisfied not only that you have committed very serious offences but also that you are a dangerous offender as defined by the relevant Act of Parliament. For you, the appropriate sentence is one of life imprisonment.

‘The fact that you eventually pleaded guilty is a factor in your favour, and I take those guilty pleas into account so far as I can do so, but the extent to which they can assist you is minimal, for two reasons. First, because I have no doubt that your guilty pleas were cynically timed to suit your own purposes, and did not reflect any regret for what you had done. Secondly, because in your case the overall sentence which must be imposed is dictated by the exceptional seriousness of your crimes. In plain terms... you will never be released from prison.’

Poignant: The coffin of Fiona Bone, with her hat, gloves and a medal on top, is carried into Manchester Cathedral after processing along the city's Deansgate on Thursday, October last year

Comrades: Thousands of officers marched behind the PC Bone's coffin and also lined the streets as they paid their respects

CREGAN'S 17-WEEK TRIAL REQUIRED £5MILLION OF SECURITY

Killer Dale Cregan was subjected to twice-daily checks behind his false eye as part of the intensive security operation surrounding his trial.

Nothing was left to chance for the ring of steel thrown around Preston Crown Court which cost more than £5 million to mount.

All Category A inmates transported to court need to undergo a strip search and in Cregan's case that included his left eye socket - a time-consuming extra check which is said to have annoyed the killer.

A source at HMP Manchester, better known as Strangeways, said: 'Every time he comes in and every time he goes out of the building he must be searched and checked - including behind his eye.

'Because he is a category A prisoner, each time he leaves these walls he is strip searched and he must take his eye out so we can look behind it for drugs or some sort of weapon or anything he shouldn't have.

'And every time he comes back from court he gets strip searched again and he has to take his eye out again - and it p***** him off."

Cregan is thought to have lost his eye in a fight with police in Thailand which involved a knuckle-duster.

It is understood Cregan has been segregated from other prisoners for the last six months and is locked in his cell for 23 hours a day.

He is watched closely when his cell door is unlocked for his hour in the exercise yard, after he made threats to harm a prison officer.

Around 150 officers, several armed, swamped Preston Crown Court on each day of the trial which started in February as they monitored the complex and surrounding streets.

Two snipers were positioned on the facing roof of a solicitor's building, while a portable cabin was erected at the entrance to assist in the searching of all visitors.

Two paramedics were also on standby at court each day in case emergency medical assistance was needed.

Greater Manchester Police's armed units were responsible for the manpower in escorting the convoy of vans containing Cregan.

Using
the name Adam Gartree, he said a man had thrown a concrete slab through
the window of a house and run off across a nearby field in Mottram,
Greater Manchester.

When the call handler told him someone would be round, Cregan replied chillingly: ‘I’ll be waiting.’

The
two PCs were sent to investigate and drove the short distance from
their police station before getting out to walk up the drive.

But, as they approached, the front door opened and they were confronted by him and he immediately shot them both.

Protected
by their body armour, both officers escaped injury and desperately
tried to get away or take cover. PC Hughes ran back towards their van
while PC Bone moved to her left to get out of the gunman’s sights.

But
they were mown down in a hail of 32 bullets. Just 31 seconds after
arriving, both lay dead or fatally hurt. The court was told Cregan
emptied the magazine of his Glock pistol and only stopped firing when he
ran out of bullets.

Cregan shot Pc Hughes eight times, including three strikes to the head as she lay on the ground.

Pc Bone was hit up to eight times after she managed to draw and fire her Taser as Cregan discharged 32 bullets in total in barely half a minute.

Then, as the officers lay on the ground, he tossed a fragmentation grenade at them before jumping into a car and driving off.

The same day he handed himself in at Hyde police station and he was asked if he had any weapons on him.

Cregan
replied: ‘I dropped the gun at the scene and I’ve murdered two police
officers.

‘You were hounding my family so I took it out on yous
(sic).’ Later he said: ‘Sorry about those two that have been killed. I
wish it was men.’

Despite this admission, and confiding in others he had murdered them, he later denied it, only to change his pleas in February.

Cregan stood impassively in the dock as the clerk asked how he now
pleaded to the charge of murdering PC Bone on September 18 last year.

‘Guilty,’
he said in a broad Mancunian accent. He was then asked for his plea on
the charge of murdering PC Hughes. ‘Guilty,’ he said again.

The deaths sparked an outpouring of emotion, which led to thousands lining the streets in their memory at a series of vigils and their funerals.

Fellow officers openly sobbed and held one another as they laid flowers where they died, and Prime Minister David Cameron described the attack as 'a shocking reminder of the debt we owe to those who put themselves in danger to keep us safe and secure'.

Earlier hearing: Cregan is surrounded by five police officers at Manchester Magistrates' Court last September

Villain: After a night of booze and cigars before killing the police officers, Dale Cregan, is show here handing himself in at Hyde police station that day

Heroes: The lives of PC Nicola Hughes and PC Fiona Bone and were taken when they attended a 'routine call'

Relatives of both officers, including their parents, had earlier been in court to see the court case open.

They
had watched in tears as CCTV footage was played of the officers
climbing into their police van before setting off to investigate reports
of a burglary, before they were murdered in a 31 second hail of gunfire.

Pc Bone's mother and father, June, 67, and Paul, 64, from the Isle of
Man, and sister Vicky, 36, from Leeds, sat in the public gallery as the
jury was brought into court for legal formalities before the jurors
retired again minutes later.

Others: Anthony Wilkinson, 34, (left) from Beswick, pleaded guilty during the trial to murdering David Short and possessing a firearm. Mohammed Ali, 32, (right) from Chadderton, was found guilty of assisting an offender

Crimes: Damian Gorman, 38, (left) and Luke Livesey, 28, (right) were found guilty of the murder of Mark Short in the Cotton Tree pub and the attempted murders of three others that night